When 'Shadow' saw the two figures high above, he understood at once that prey had delivered itself. He remembered clearly that the Otsutsuki Clan who died on the Moon, including Hamura Otsutsuki, had not had their souls enter the Pure Land. Those souls were still wandering.
Hinata Hyuga Mirai had seen Hamura Otsutsuki and the countless souls of the dead Otsutsuki Clan. These were not the souls of ordinary Ninja, but high quality souls from the Otsutsuki Clan. That meant a rare opportunity.
"If I can take all of those souls, how many mid level or even high level Great Hollow could I raise, and how many points would I save?" 'Shadow' smiled as he thought about it. Becoming an enemy of the entire Ninja World was inevitable, and Hagoromo Otsutsuki held the souls of all the strong ones in the Pure Land, which would be a serious problem if he acted. To prepare for facing Sage of Six Paths or even stronger enemies in the future, 'Shadow' needed more strength and more subordinates to handle troublesome opponents.
The souls of the Otsutsuki Clan on the Moon were excellent materials. For now, going to the Moon to face Hamura Otsutsuki was impossible, but since the prey had come to him, there was no reason to refuse Zetsu. With that thought, 'Shadow' appeared at the center of the battlefield between Konoha and Sunagakure, right beside Nagato, Kakuzu, and Miyashiro En.
"…Shadow?" Nagato turned instinctively, raised his guard, then lowered his arm when he recognized him. He frowned and asked, "What are you doing here?"
Long ago, he and Hanzo had agreed on their division of labor. Hanzo would push into the rear camp of Sunagakure for a decapitation strike, while he and the others of Akatsuki would move to the front lines, hide among the Amegakure Ninja, slaughter forces from Sunagakure and the Konoha Ninja, and search for the One-Tail Jinchuriki to seize it.
The goal of Akatsuki was always the Tailed Beasts, and they could not fully expose themselves to the Five Great Nations yet. Because of that, Nagato had not used his full strength. The sudden appearance of 'Shadow' was unexpected and made him uneasy.
With a wet snap, the masked Miyashiro En raised the longbow Ninja Tool taken from the Underground Palace. He gathered Chakra into arrows and shot down several Sunagakure Ninja charging toward them. This bow, named the "Sacred Annihilation Arrow," was a Ninja Tool that could form arrows directly from Chakra.
Earlier, before Hanzo had appeared in the camp of the Sunagakure forces, it was Miyashiro En who had fired Chakra arrows into the sky and killed several unaware Sunagakure Ninja. Now, Miyashiro En and Kakuzu both noticed the disturbance and moved closer to Nagato and 'Shadow'.
"Shadow," Kakuzu said in a hoarse, heavy voice. "Did Hanzo finish things over there?"
'Shadow' ignored their questions and looked up at the thick black clouds overhead. He spoke with a smile. "Nagato, I came to help you clear the field."
"I also want you to see what Universal Pull can do, aside from the repulsion of Shinra Tensei." Hearing this, Nagato froze for a moment, then frowned deeply.
'Shadow' paid no attention to his confusion and raised the Box of Ultimate Bliss in his hand. With a harsh tearing sound, as if space itself were being ripped apart, a violent noise exploded in the Hollow air before him. The space there split open like cloth torn by invisible claws, forming an irregular and terrifyingLie gap.
From deep within theLie gap surged rolling darkness and deathly stillness. A cold wave poured out, chilling everything nearby. Miyashiro En stared in shock, while Kakuzu stepped back without thinking.
"What is that?" Miyashiro En asked.
"This is a black cavity," 'Shadow' said calmly. "You can consider it a kind of space time Ninjutsu."
He had spent fifteen thousand points to modify the "Box of Ultimate Bliss," leaving him with only twenty three thousand points now. Besides incubating 'Hollow,' the Box of Ultimate Bliss now functioned as an independent space that could be entered and exited through the black cavity. As long as Ryuji Hyuga or this clone of 'Shadow' held the Box of Ultimate Bliss, they could tear open space anywhere to move or summon a "Great Hollow."
Just like this.
In the next instant, from the center of the black cavity that connected space to the Box of Ultimate Bliss, a slender white figure radiating cold stepped out. It was the First Blade, Whirlpool. The temperature of the entire battlefield seemed to drop, and even the nonstop fighting between the Sunagakure Ninja and the Konoha Ninja paused for a brief moment.
That inhuman appearance made the pupils of Nagato and the others shrink. "My lord," Whirlpool said, placing a hand before the chest and bowing slightly to 'Shadow'.
'Shadow' slowly raised his hand and pointed upward, unconcerned about whether it could be seen. He smiled and said, "They stand too high." Whirlpool looked up into the heavy clouds, crimson eyes locking onto the two figures above.
At the same time, Toneri Otsutsuki's father sensed the source of the cold. His gaze pierced through layers of rain and fixed on the two figures on the ground. The instant he locked onto 'Shadow' and Whirlpool, the latter raised the hand that held a deep Void Hole.
With sharp cracking sounds, several jet black chains covered in red runes shot out from the Void Hole in Whirlpool's palm like living snakes. Their speed was unbelievable, crossing hundreds of meters in a blink and screaming through the air. Their target was clear, the father and son floating high above.
"How is this possible? From this distance, we were actually seen?" The father's heart shook as he urgently accelerated the flying Ninja Tool to climb higher and escape. Yet the chains seemed endless, clinging like parasites, extending and chasing at a speed far beyond their flight.
The chains did not travel straight. They twisted, coiled, and intertwined in the air, their speed and extension completely beyond the father's understanding of power in the Ninja World. "Lowly Ninja, you are courting death," he shouted, eyes flashing coldly as the ominous chains closed in like hands from hell.
He raised both hands and formed seals, as if connecting to something far away. Deep within the Moon, the Giant Tenseigan floating at the center of a vast temple erupted with unprecedented light. A vast and pure torrent of Chakra ignored distance, crossed the gap between worlds, and poured into his body.
A blue green layer of Chakra wrapped around him like armor as he thrust his palm downward toward the pursuing chains. Under Nagato's suddenly contracting gaze, a terrifying wave of repulsive force burst outward in a fan shape.
"Shinra Tensei?!"
The cry burst from Nagato before he could stop himself. In front of Toneri Father, the space seemed crushed by an invisible giant hand, releasing a sharp scream like glass under unbearable strain, a sound of cracking and collapse.
kacha! kacha! kacha!
The black chains that had rushed forward met the same fate. Before the power drawn from the Giant Tenseigan, they shattered inch by inch like fragile crystal and fell apart.
The remaining force spread outward like a tidal wave, sweeping the area and clearing the rain within hundreds of meters. Even the dark clouds above them seemed torn away, blown apart into a vast circular hollow.
"Hmph."
Seeing this, Toneri Father snorted coldly, pride and disdain flashing through his eyes. If he had come alone, he would have made these low and filthy Ninja understand what real power was.
But Toneri was still at his side, so he chose not to pursue them further. He formed hand seals, controlled the flying Ninja Tool, and prepared to leave this polluted place.
Watching this, the shocked Nagato instinctively raised his hand and tried to use Universal Pull. At that moment, Shadow spoke.
"Uzumaki," he said. "Try the new move."
As his words fell, the one beside him called "Uzumaki" made a new motion. It did not chase with chains again, but slowly lifted its head, the lower half of its face hidden by a mask, and opened its mouth as if in slow motion.
Behind the mask was not teeth or tongue, but a hollow darkness. A deep hum rang out as a terrifying wave appeared, freezing the soul, while vast mental energy gathered wildly before its mouth.
Before the opened maw, a point of deep blood red light suddenly lit up. It condensed, compressed, and refined at an alarming speed, and a frightening aura climbed higher and higher.
"That is Tailed Beast Ball… no, that is wrong. Pure Yin Release?! And that thing…"
Feeling the pressure from below, Toneri Father looked down without thinking, and his expression changed at once. As a member of the Otsutsuki Clan with a complete legacy, he knew far more than most Ninja about the Akatsuki.
Yin Release is the power of Yin, born from mental energy that governs imagination, creating form from nothing. Yang Release is the power of Yang, born from physical energy that governs life, giving vitality to form.
The Tailed Beasts were created by Sage of Six Paths after extracting the Chakra of the Ten-Tails and using his powerful Yin-Yang Release. In that process, Yin Release creates the body from nothing, while Yang Release grants it life.